`Felabration’ opens in Lagos with schools debate

The annual festival to commemorate the life and times of Nigerian musical icon, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti opened on Wednesday with schools debate at Freedom Park, Lagos.

Fela surrounded by paparazzi’s

Felabration is an annual music festival conceived in 1998 by Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti in memory and celebration of her father Fela, also a human rights activist known for pioneering the afrobeat genre of music.

Newsmen report that students from no fewer than 10 public and private secondary schools across Lagos participated in the debate, with the theme, “African History; a curriculum necessity.”

According to Yeni, the debate was to encourage intellectualism among young minds.

“You know Fela had his intellectual side and he believed so much in intellectual debates.

“This debate was conceptualised to nurture and encourage the culture of intellectual debates amongst the young ones.

“With the continuous support of the Lagos state ministry of education and the Felebration committee members, we have been able to pull it through over the years,” she said.